Battles
by like a lemon
Summary: After the Battle of Helms Deep a new battle begins for Aragorn to save Legolas.
1. Chapter 1

Legolas felt a pressure rip through his side. Vibrations travelled through his ribcage and down his spine. It was an odd feeling, one he could not describe if anyone asked him later. He looked down at his left side and frowned at the sight. There was an arrow poking sickeningly out from the left side of his rib cage. Legolas couldn't work out what he was looking at, he felt no pain and yet what he saw made him think he should be feeling otherwise.

"Oh." He murmured as it dawned on him what had happened. The battle for Helm's deep had been over for at least an hour now. The company were looking through the dead to try to find men of their own so they could be buried with respect. The group of them had spread out over the field infront of the walls to try and make quick work of the sorting. Legolas had not expected to be targeted at this time so was shocked to see the arrow sticking out of his side. He touched the fletching, it's dark brown battered feather meant he identified it as an Uruk arrow. He looked up trying to find the enemy who had fired but the swift movement made him feel light headed. His breathing, he noticed, was slowly getting more difficult. His lungs began to made a gurgling noise when he inhaled. A heavy ache began to rake through his side causing him to give out a small cry.

"Legolas?" A voice called from a distance. Legolas tried to respond. He wanted to shout to the others that there must be an Uruk-hai nearby who had not been slain. However the pain was travelling fast around his ribcage and up his throat. He couldn't respond, he only managed a twitch of his head. This caused him to lose balance and fall, ungracefully to the ground.

"LEGOLAS!" There was a harsh cry from a familiar voice. Legolas wanted to call out that he would be fine and they should look for the Uruk. Swift footfalls became louder as someone ran to Legolas' side. Legolas couldn't see who it was anymore. His vision was swimming and he was heaving for air. He could not seem to inflate his lungs. Suddenly he realised that he probably wasn't going to be fine, he had never really thought about death, assuming it would not affect him and when it had crossed his mind he thought that it was rather morbid and would think about something entirely different. It dawned on him now like a freezing cold, biting wind and circled around his mind leaving him terrified.

There was scuffling going on around him, and faint voices calling to eachother. Legolas felt his head shift and a warm heat travelling across his forehead. He knew that gentle healer's touch anywhere.

"Ar..." he tried to force the name out of his throat, but it was caught on something that could not be moved.

Quite suddenly the earth beneath him seemed to fall away but he was anchored to something that rocked gently and the colours surronding him changed from a dark brown to a pale grey. He felt very tired now, he slowly let his eyes closed wondering where the person behind those hands had gone before he faded to nothing.

Aragorn had seen it all happen in slow motion.

He kept his eyes toward the ground most of the time, sweeping the area looking for the fallen men. However, he kept looking towards Legolas who was about 200 yards away doing the same as he was. Aragorn knew how upset Legolas had been when he had told him of the death of Haldir. Legolas didn't tend to show what he was thinking or feeling very often, but when he heard the news Aragorn could see Legolas' eyes mist and become vacant. In that moment he wanted to pull Legolas to his chest and hold him, to feel his warmth against him. Instead, sensing that Legolas wouldn't respond well to much contact, he placed his hand on his sholder, then pointed to the West indicating that Legolas should start work in a secluded part of the deep.

Aragorn had seen a rapid movement not far from where Legolas had been working and his head shot up, his reactions still quick because of the battle. He saw the arrow hit Legolas in the chest. That was when time slowed down, Aragorn tried to move fast but he couldn't. It was as though he was suffering from some paralysis that didn't stop you moving but made your joints cold and slow to respond.

He watched as Legolas realised what had happened.

"Legolas?" he called.

The elf fell to the ground.

"LEGOLAS!" he screamed. He began to run, pushing against his slow joints.

"Gimli!" he called. "The Uruk!" he pointed towards the body lying on the ground, that was slowly reaching around for another arrow.

He no longer cared about anything else but his fallen friend. He moved as fast as he could eventually reaching Legolas' side and kneeling. Aragorn vaguely heard the scuffling then the thunk of an axe dropping.

Aragorn looked at Legolas with a mixture of horror and disbelief. His face was facing away and his golden hair had fallen around his head like some sort of strange halo, shimmering against the dark brown of the earth. Aragorn shifted Legolas' head into a more natural position. His face, that was usually alabaster, was grey. Aragorn couldn't help but run his hand over the elfs forehead as he pulled his hands away. Aragorn's eyes shifted from his face to the torso, horrified when he say the arrow poking out and blood pooling around the shaft. He could no longer feel or hear anything. His vision swam with the sight of the blood.

Without another thought Aragorn, knowing he could do nothing here, pushed his hands under Legolas' knees and behind his back. Hoisting himself up to his full height with the elf in his arms he began a joint grinding run back towards the walls.

Tbc...


	2. Chapter 2

**Battles - Chapter 2**

**Hi guys, thank you so much for the reviews. I'm pretty new to this, so it means a lot that you spent time responding :) **

His world was a pale orange, threaded with pinks and golds. The threads floated as though they were peices of fragile satin in a peaceful lake. The orange light brought warmth to Legolas' core. 'Beautiful' Legolas thought. He sought out the threads, desperate to touch them with his fingers but he found he couldn't move, bound by an invisible force.

The warmth began to fade and the orange slowly began to darken to brown. Panic began to grip him, the peaceful lakish quality to his surrounding changed and Legolas suddenly felt constricted. A breath forced itself down his throat to his lungs, causing a horrific grating noise. Legolas wanted to scream for help but he found that his tongue was paralysed and his chest throbbed.

Something cold and wet slid over his forehead suddenly. It made Legolas flinch, but a warmth pressed against his cheek and he was comforted. The constriction around him stopped and his surroundings became that pale glowing orange again. He felt like he had been anchored again after a storm. The warmth on his cheek moved but didn't leave his face. It brushed down over his chin and then up his other cheek to his forehead, then descending to his eyes.

"Legolas." The voice was soft and low. "Can you hear me?" Legolas was confused, where had that voice come from and why did it sound so familiar?

'Yes, I can!' Legolas wanted to shout but his tongue was still unresponsive.

"Please." The voice said. That one syllable reverberated around his head and through his chest. It sounded anguished and Legolas wanted to soothe whoever it was. The warmth, which had moved back to his cheek, remained there for a while longer and then vanished.

Aragorn was tired. Bone achingly tired. He hadn't rested properly in at least 4 days. It had been 3 days since the battle and since Legolas had been shot.

Aragorn had run fast as his legs could carry him back to the walls of the deep and into the cavernous entrance. He had not stopped as the guards at the door tried to speak to him but run straight past and through the internal doors to the main hall. Many wounded where being cared for here. There were cots lining the walls with the injured filling them.

Legolas' face was ashen now and blood was starting to weep out of his nose and mouth. It was a truely horrific image, especially when he was limp in Aragorn's arms. He bounded through the hall to an antechamber where there was some unused beds and other unused medical paraphenalia. He gently lay Legolas on a bed and hastily found something to saunch the flow of blood from the wound. He carefully began removing the arrow from his friends chest. His healing half kicked in. His body moved faster than his mind to try and heal Legolas.

Two hours he worked before he could do no more. Legolas' chest was bound with creamy gauze and he was wiped clean of any blood. His skin was still ashen. At first glance Aragorn would have thought him dead if it hadn't been for the very slight rise and fall of his rib cage. Twice Aragorn had been on the brink of losing him, but Legolas had always pulled through.

Aragorn pulled back from Legolas' waxy form and slumped down on another nearby bed. He sat transfixed by the movement of Legolas' chest. Before long he was interupted from his reverie.

"How's the lad?" Gimli's gruff voice echoed around the room.

"I've done all I can." Aragorn signed. "It is up to him now." Gimli nodded slightly, his lips set in grim line. He propped his axe by the door and sat next to Aragorn.

"He'll pull through, lad. He won't be giving up on our competition so quickly. Not while I'm beating him anyway." A smile spread over Aragorn's face, but it quickly faded.

"You need to get some rest." Aragorn replied.

"Aye, that I do." Gimli said. "But so do you."

"I should not leave him." Aragorn hastily responded.

"Nay, you won't laddie. You rest here now. I'll stay here and watch him. If anything changes I'll wake ya."

Gimli patted Aragorn's knee with his meaty hand and stood. He moved a chair close to Legolas and sat down.

Aragorn closed his eyes, sleep evaded him for a long while, but he soon fell into a fitful sleep, that he would wake from regularly.

Things had carried on like this for 2 more days. Gimli stayed with Aragorn and they took it in turns to watch over the elf. Legolas, had not changed much in the last two days, but he had developed a slight fever about 10 hours after he was shot. Aragorn tried to control by mopping his forehead occasionally.

It was quite sudden when Legolas gave a loud grating breath. Aragorn was in the room alone. Gimli having gone to get some food for them to share. The sudden sound made him jump from his chair. He quickly moved to Legolas' side. The elf had gone quiet again but his face showed distress. Aragorn slid the cool cloth over his forehead and placed his hand on his cheek.

Aragorn stared a while at the elf's perfect features as the distress ebbed from his face. Aragorn has always marvelled at the beauty of elves, but there was something about Legolas that was wholly different. He began to carefully trace the lines of Legolas' face.

"Legolas." he spoke softly. "Can you hear me?" Sadness and fear began to well up from his core, up his throat. He felt cold and alone suddenly. The idea of losing his elf becoming very real.

"Please."


	3. Chapter 3

Battles - Chapter 3

**Hi guys, sorry its been SO SO long. I've started back at university... Which has been a bit hectic AND I've had dreadful writers block. However, here is chapter 3. I'm not sure that I'm happy with it so it might change. Let me know what you think. **

Aragorn held his breath.

"I am sorry." Gandalf whispered in a sympathetic, mournful tone.

"We cannot do this. He won't survive." Aragorn, began to feel the burning heat of anger rise up his spine and begin to pool in his middle.

"I know this will be hard Aragorn, you will have to leave him here."

"NO!" Aragorn rounded on Gandalf, coming into his personal space. He stared into those wisen grey eyes. Their sympathetic gaze only fuelled his anger. "You cannot make me leave here, I have cared for him! He needs me!" His last statement ended in a shout.

"Think Aragorn! You cannot stay here with an invalid while your people need you! The eye will be on Gondor soon, they will need all the help they can get. They need their leader."

Aragorn knew this was true. There was certainly no way that he could ignore Gondor. He would have to be there when they called. His stomach twisted and he shivered, he knew that Legolas was in no state to be moved. The thought of leaving his elf was bitter. How could he leave here without the guarantee that he would see Legolas again? Aragorn couldn't remember the last time he had seen Legolas's face free of concern and pain. Aragorn felt as though he had been punched in the gut, his breath came in short pants.

A large hand descended onto his shoulder.

"We leave tomorrow at dawn, Aragorn." Gandalf's voice was steady and emotionless.

Aragorn made no movement or response as Gandalf left the King's chambers. He was frozen, dread washed over him. He had to see Legolas.

After the Legolas's awful grating breath, there had been nothing. Not since then had he shown any signs of life, other than the shallow movements of his chest. Gimli could tell it was affecting Aragorn terribly. For 4 days now he and Aragorn had been caring for the elf and it was beginning to take its toll.

Aragorn had dark circles around his eyes, from lack of rest. His skin was very pale and his face pinched. It took a lot of coaxing on Gimli's behalf to make Aragorn leave Legolas's side to go and get food and rest.

Gimli approached the door to Legolas's room slowly, it was time for them to change shifts. His dwarvish ears picked up the soft, low timbre of Aragorn's voice as he spoke to Legolas.

Everytime Gimli came to relieve Aragorn of his positon he could hear Aragorn speaking. He could never hear exactly what he said, but the tone told Gimli all he needed to know.

He pushed open the door lightly. By the time Gimli had entered the room Aragorn was standing. Gimli felt he was intruding upon a very private moment.

"Gandalf wants to speak to you in the King's Chambers, he told me it's important." Aragorn turned to look at Gimli and nodded. Gimli could see how miserable he was, he wished there was a way he could make him feel better, but he knew that the answer to that lay unresponsive on the bed.

Legolas felt heavy and numb. He had tried a few times to move, but his limbs and joints felt leaden. It had seemed like an eternity that Legolas had been here. His world had changed from pale oranges to darker oranges, flecked with crimson threads.

The voice had returned often and had spoken to him for what seemed like hours, although it had said very little. Occasionally it would ask if he was there, to which Legolas was always keen to respond, but he could never find his voice.

Everytime the voice spoke it was followed by the warmth. The warmth would trace around his face and over his eyes, then move to his hands and dance around his fingers. When Legolas felt the warmth soak through his skin he rejoiced, it was like lying in the sun. His leaden joints would feel light again, as though he could float away.

"Legolas." The voice pierced the silence suddenly. The voice was laced with pain, more so than usual. There was a heavy silence, that settled thick in the air.

The warmth tingled on his hand.

"I am so sorry, Legolas." Legolas felt the agony of the voice reverberate through his skull. The warmth moved to his cheek and then slid over his lips, where it traced their outline. He heard a low whine, it sounded like a wounded animal, cornered with no fight left.

The heat intensified on his cheek. "What if we never meet again? What will I do then?" The voice seemed to break as it asked him this.

Legolas felt his heart jerk. 'NO' he tried to shout. 'You must not leave me! I am here! I am here!' Panick engulfed him and clogged his senses. 'Why are you leaving? I am still here!'

Legolas felt his muscles begin to tense. It felt like he was being constricted by iron bands. The silence began to get louder until it roared in his ears. The bands kept hold of their vice like grip until pain started to spread through his chest, and throb down his spine. He did not think he could bear in anymore, yet it continued. He tried to fight it but the bands had him locked in position.

Suddenly, the bands snapped, he inhaled deeply. He was free. His eyes were burnt by a bright white light.

Tbc...


End file.
